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In A Midsummer Night's Dream Puck and Oberon watch over the young lovers (and Bottom) and save them from coming to any harm. Explain how they are able to do this, through their magical powers. In Romeo and Juliet the Friar and the Nurse try to help the tragic lovers but fail to save them. Compare their efforts to help Romeo and Juliet with the efforts of Puck and Oberon. How and why are the fairies successful where human helpers fail? Compare the Friar's use of magical or seeming magical herbs with Oberon's use of magical plants (Cupid's flower and Dian's bud).
"'Tis almost fairy time"
In both plays characters refer to fairies. Romeo and Juliet's longest speech (spoken by Mercutio) is a description of Queen Mab, the "fairies' midwife", but he admits to making it up. In A Midsummer Night's Dream Theseus refers jokingly to “fairy time”, but may well not believe in fairies any more than Romeo and Mercutio. What difference do the fairies make to the comic world of A Midsummer Night's Dream compared to the harsher view of the world that we see in Romeo and Juliet?
Verona and Athens
In both plays, the place where the action occurs is important. Comment on the various settings within each play, and explain what it has to do with what happens. (In A Midsummer Night's Dream look at Athens and the Palace Wood outside the city; in Romeo and Juliet look at the city square in Verona, Capulet's house and garden, the Friar's cell, Mantua, and the Capulet tomb.)
Tragedy and comedy
Try to explain what these terms mean, as descriptions of types of play, when we apply them to A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet. Try to refer to their structure, theme and mood.
Fathers and daughters
In both plays we find heroines (Juliet and Hermia) who are subject to the authority of their fathers. In one play we see a father begin by giving his daughter a lot of freedom, and end by removing it from her; in the other, we see a father try to control his daughter's life for most of the play, but who is reconciled to her near its end. Comment on these relationships, as you see them in the two plays. (Pyramus and Thisbe also supposedly have tyrannical parents).
Contrast
Both plays exploit obvious contrasts for theatrical effect. Among these are light and dark (or day and night), love and hate and the upper and lower ends of the social scale. Explain how any of these work to make the drama more effective.
Order and disorder
This is a contrast of theme you will find in almost any of Shakespeare's plays. In both A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet we see rulers (Theseus/Oberon and Prince Escalus) try to restore or maintain order, in the face of disruptive or anarchic behaviour. Show how this appears in each play, and how important it is to the play's central themes. In each play there are figures who represent disorder (Bottom and Puck; Mercutio and Tybalt). Explain how these challenge the rulers' attempts to preserve order in their domains (territory).
Pyramus and Thisbe
In A Midsummer Night's DreamThe workmen's Lamentable Comedy can be seen as a parody (silly copy) of Romeo and Juliet. There are obvious similarities in the plot (can you say what these are?) but not in the theatrical qualities of the two pieces. In Pyramus and Thisbe we see how not to do things which are done much better elsewhere in A Midsummer Night's Dream,in Romeo and Juliet or in other plays by Shakespeare. (These include depicting wild animals, a wall, moonlight and killing on stage). Comment on how these things are done both in Pyramus and Thisbe and in the plays proper. Comment on how hard or easy it is for actors to speak the dialogue in Shakespeare's plays generally, and to speak the verse we meet in Pyramus and Thisbe (look at the end of the Prologue, and the dying speeches of the two lovers). Explain how the workmen's play is a good commentary on young lovers who take themselves too seriously.
The plays in performance
Comment on how the plays were presented in the versions you have seen. Was it a cinema, TV or stage performance? Comment on such things as costume, props and action; you may also refer to lighting, music, SFX, and anything else which caught your interest. If you were to direct (in a given medium - stage, TV, cinema) how would you approach these things?
Conclusion
Explain what you like about either play or both. Say how well they work in performance, and what kind of response they provoke in the audience.
Remember to present your work attractively, with illustrations (for eaxmple, to show costume or props) and any diagrams (ideas for staging) to clarify your ideas.
III. Conclusion
1.3 Studying Romeo and Juliet - criteria for assessment
The headings below show how details of the play relate to the broad headings for assessment of work on Shakespeare.
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Nature of play/implications/moral or philosophical significance
This refers to the ideas or themes in the play - what it is about but not its story. In Romeo and Juliet this means at least the following:
Love - the difference between Romeo's pretended love (affectation) for Rosaline and real love.
Fortune: "a greater power than we can contradict" - how we are not always or fully in control of our own lives
Authority - of parents · of the law; · of the Prince.
Tragedy - what does this mean? Does the play show general or universal truths about tragic love?The causes of tragedy.
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Stagecraft/appeal to audience
Characterization - this is not description of characters but how they are presented.
The structure of the play.
Important props (swords, the Friar's drugs, the poison, Romeo's dagger).
Contrast - light and dark · fate and free will · love and hate · death and life · appearance and reality · public and private lives.
Oppositions of time - youth and age · past and present · fast and slow · real time and dream time
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Language
Important figures of speech (metaphor/simile).
Descriptive language for things we can't see - Romeo's description of Juliet's beauty (essential in a theatre where Juliet is played by a boy Mercutio's Queen Mab speech.
Forms of verse and prose for dialogue: blank verse; · occasional rhymed verse (often at the end of a scene); · sonnet forms - the Prologue, the lovers' meeting
Stichomythia (alternating one-liners) and other patterned language in the characters' speeches.
Puns and other verbal humour
Language showing attitudes to class - villain, My man, second-person pronoun form: you/your (polite/formal) or thou/thee/thy (derogatory or informal).
IV. Bibliography
1. William Shakespeare Tragedies, Comedies, Sonnets, Chronicles in 47 volumes Yale University Press, Yale New Haven 1958, pp.1, 3-5, 7-9, 23-26, 45-87
2. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. The Shakespeare Head Press Edition. The Wordsworth Poetry library. 1994 by Wordsworth Edition Ltd. Hertfordshire. Vols 1,3,4,6,10,11, 16-18
3. Г. Брандес "Шекспир. Жизнь и произведения" Серия "Гений в искусстве", М.: "Алгоритм", 1997. стр. 117, 127, 139-143
4. "Вильям Шекспир. Сонеты". Перевод с английского И.М. Ивановского.— СПб.: "Тесса", 2001.
5. Комарова В.П. "Творчество Шекспира".-- СПб.: Филологический факультет Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета, 2001.
6. W. Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet New Folger library 1978
7. Alfred Bates The Drama: Its History, Literature and Influence on Civilization, vol. 13. ed.. London: Historical Publishing Company, 1996. pp. 152-157.
8. Вильям Шекспир Комедии, хроники, трагедии. Собр. соч. в 2тт., Т.1 М. ИХЛ. 1988 стр7-31 Т.2 стр. 48-49, 79-126, 149, 216, 442-451
9. Д.Урнов Шекспир М. ИПЛ. Стр.23-27
10. Ю.Г. Зеленецкий Шекспир и время М. Рипол-классик 2000 стр.23
11. G. Bargons “Translation of the tragedies” Yale University Press, New Haven 1958, pp.1, 3-5, 7-9, 23-26, 45-87
12. Alfred Bates The Drama: Its History, Literature and Influence on Civilization, vol. 13. ed.. London: Historical Publishing Company, 1996. pp. 152-157.
13. Вильям Шекспир Комедии, хроники, трагедии. Собр. соч. в 2тт., Т.1 М. ИХЛ. 1988 pp. 7-31
14. Д.Урнов Шекспир М. ИПЛ. Стр.23-27
15. Adams J. Q. A Life of William Shakespeare. New York; Houghton-Mifflin Co., 1923.p.345
16. Alexander P., Shakespeare. London: Oxford University Press, 1964 p.34
17. Barber C. L. Shakespeare's Festive Comedy. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1959 p.67
18. Bentley G. E. Shakespeare, a Biographical Handbook. Theobold Lewis, ed. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1961 p.78
19. Bethell S. L. Shakespeare and the Popular Tradition. London: King and Staples, 1944 p.158-160
20. Parrott Th. M. Shakespearean Tragedy. New York: Oxford University Press, 1949 p.220-221
21. Clemen W. The Development of Shakespeare's Imagery. London: Methuen and Co., 1951 p.35
22. Craig H. An Interpretation of Shakespeare. New York: Dryden Press, 1948 p.300-304
23. Ellis-Fermor M. Shakespeare the Dramatist. London: Geoffrey Cumberlege, 1948 p.84-86
24. Palmer J. Comic Characters of Shakespeare. London: The Macmillan Company, 1946 p.110-111
25. Internet: http://www.shakespeareantheatre.com
26. World Book Encyclopedia Chicago 1993 Vol. 16 p.442-443
0 The full list of works and authors is mentioned in bibliography to this qualification paper
0 Here and futher we quote the following issue: William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet Bantam Doubleday Day Publishing Co Inc. New York 1996
0 See: T. Coelridge To Shakespere’s Memory Chicago 1997 Col. of works Vol.14 p.343
0 See: В.Г.Белинский Мой Пушкин М. ИХЛ 1969 р.178
0 See: G. Bargons “Translation of the tragedies” Yale University Press, New Haven 1958, pp. 23-26
0 Quoted from: Alexander P., Shakespeare. London: Oxford University Press, 1964 p.34
0 Quoted from the book: Alfred Bates The Drama: Its History, Literature and Influence on Civilization, vol. 13. ed.. London: Historical Publishing Company, 1996. pp. 152-157.
0 Found in Internet: http://www.shakespeareantheatre.com
0 Based on the screenversions: B. Luhrmann Romeo and Juliet Rome 1996 Bantam Doubleday Dell Pub. NewYork
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